If you go down to your local AT&T store to buy a new phone or mobile broadband modem you expect AT&T to subsidize the price of the device in exchange for signing away two years of mobile carrier freedom.

According to a source at Engadget, Radio Shack of all places may be the first company to offer a subsidized 3G enabled netbook. The netbook in question is the Acer Aspire One, already the best selling netbook around right now.

Acer, in conjunction with DisplayLink, announced the availability of a new USB computer LCD monitor which still supports Windows Vista’s Aero Glass interface as well as other 3D functions. Acer’s latest B223 USB LCD monitor comes with the following features.

22″ LCD display, 1,680 x 1,050 resolution, DisplayLink DL-160 network display chip, USB 2.0 connectivity, 5ms response time, 32-bit, true-color graphics. The B223’s height, rotation and swivel angles can be adjusted for your optimal viewing comfort. It’s already available in Europe, retailing for about $430.

Acer has confirmed that it will release its first Acer-branded smartphone in Q1 2009. The handset will be co-developed by Acer’s original smartphone R&D team as well as their counterparts from E-Ten, the company acquired by Acer in September. E-Ten will focus on real-time stock tracking devices while Acer will take the lead in smartphone development.

No specifications, pricing or geographical availability details have been released by the company, but Acer did confirm that the device would be Windows based. We take that to mean it will be using Microsoft’s Windows Mobile OS. The first devices may be launched in Western Europe and Russia.

Computer manufacturers are gearing up for the holiday season with new products being announced all the time. One of the biggest sellers over the holidays is usually computer systems. While many want notebooks for Christmas, several manufacturers are announcing small form factor desktops for users wanting larger screens and keyboards who don’t need portability.

Yesterday eMachines announced its own new SFF systems and today Acer is announcing a new SFF of its own. The Acer system is called the Aspire X3200 and it measures 10.4-inches H x 4-inches W x 14.4-inches L. Inside the compact case is a Phenom X3 processor, Blu-ray drive, 4GB of RAM and 640GB of storage. Pricing for the system is $679.99.

I picked up an Acer Gemstone 6920 awhile back and it’s an awesome and powerful laptop. Those who are wanting to get in on the Gemstone action and haven’t yet now have four new models to look at. The high-end Aspire 8930 sports a 18.4-inch HD CineCrystal display, 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo T9400 CPU, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, NVIDIA’s GeForce 9700M GT, optional Blu-ray drive, WiFi, 320GB 7,200RPM SATA drive and starts at $1,699.99.

The 6930 features a 16-inch WXGA LCD and as you might expect, less few less options for $699.99. Then there’s the 5735 with a Pentium T3200, 15.6-inch WXGA display, and 2GB of RAM for $549.99. Last but not least is the 14.1-inch 4730, which also starts at $549.99. All are available now.

Netbooks are an interesting fad that was kicked off by the Asus Eee. The little systems are small, compact, and tend to be low cost. You can end up spending as much on a netbook as you could get a full-fledged notebook for though — if you are not careful. Back in July, Acer launched its netbook computer called the Aspire One.

Acer has now announced that the price of its Aspire One netbook has been dropped just in time for back to school. The Aspire One with Windows XP Home, 1GB of RAM, 120GB HDD, and a 3-cell battery will now retail for $349.99. A system with the same features running Linpus Linux will retail for $329.

The migration form the desktop PC to the notebook PC has been very noticeable to PC makers. Notebook computers commonly outsell their desktop brethren, but that doesn’t mean there is no place for the desktop PC today.

Acer is looking to lure businesses who need small form factor computers, but don’t want or need to go to typically more expensive notebook systems with its new Veriton S461. The S461 is a small system measuring in at 4” W x 16.3” D x 13.6” high. Acer also packs the computer with features that are appealing to businesses.

The netbook category is relatively new and is already getting crowded with lots of competition. The first netbook to show up was the ASUS Eee and it has spawned a wealth of competitors looking for a piece of the low cost netbook market.

Back in June Acer unveiled its Acer Aspire One netbook and Acer has now announced that the Aspire One is available for purchase in the America. Acer says prices for the machine starts at only $379. For that amount of cash you get a 2.17 pound netbook that measures 9.8” x 6.7” x 1.14”. The CPU is an Atom N270 and it features 512MB of RAM, 8GB SSD, 8.9” LCD, webcam, 802.11 b/g and a 3 cell battery.

I really do get the appeal of small notebooks that are really cheap. I can see having one for toting around town and sing at the coffee shop for surfing the net. I could even see using one for business if your work revolves around light data entry. To that end the Asus Eee looks pretty interesting and it’s cool to see more competition in the low cost, small notebook market.

One of the new competitors in that market is Acer and it has officially unveiled its Acer Aspire One at Computex. The little computer comes with 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and future version could come with integrated WiMAX as well. Battery life is promised to me 3 hours with standard 3-cell battery and 6 hours with the optional 6-cell battery. The LED backlit LCD is 8.9-inches and sports a 1024 x 600 resolution.

The Aspire 7720-6844 notebook includes amazing system performance and responsiveness. Features via Intel Core 2 Duo mobile processor technology, a 250 GB hard disk drive and an integrated Super-Multi drive. Comes with Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium operating system and has an eight-cell lithium ion battery for hours of reliable computing power.

The Aspire 7720-6844 notebook PC sports a nice glossy 17-inch widescreen display with CrystalBrite technology for a superior contrast ratio and intense color features. For added high-definition enjoyment, it’s equipped with Dolby Home Theater, for surround sound. You also get video conference functionality via an integrated Acer Crystal Eye webcam.

Acer America today added a new notebook PC to its lineup which focuses on the needs of business professionals. The Acer Extensa 4620 prices at around $700 starting.

The Acer Extensa 4620 is available in two configurations and sports a 14.1-inch monitor. It includes Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Windows Vista capable), Intel Centrino Duo or Pentium Dual-Core Processor technology, a hard disk drive of up to 120 GB and an integrated Super-Multi drive, depending upon the configuration.

Even as Acer goes through the hurdles necessary to acquire Gateway it continues to roll out products on American shores. It announced today its new P Series of of LCD displays, available now at around $230 for 19-inches, $270 for 20-inches, $330 for 22-inches and $500 for 24-inches.

The Acer P Series has widescreen design and are housed in a glossy, piano black bezel with curved edges. Control buttons are placed so as to add to the relatively clean lines. The displays are HD ready, being outfitted with either HDMI or DVI, get upwards of a 3000:1 contrast ratio depending upon the model and are Windows Vista enhanced so as to work better with the Office 2007 interface.

The little computer company started by Ted Waitt in a farm house near the Iowa-South Dakota border and later made the Fortune 500 has had an impressive 22-year run is now being sold to Taiwan’s Acer for a reported $710 million. This move appears to be a win for both companies as Gateway, although still ranked as the 3rd largest PC maker in the US (tied for 3rd), hasn’t had their best sales this past year. Also, Acer will now have a chance to have an instantly larger presence in the US market and plans to keep the Gateway and eMachines brands alive (we’re not sure about the dairy cow boxes).

The acquisition is expected to be completed by December of this year pending the standard international closing conditions. According to Acer this move will further increase the buying …

Hoping to attract the users looking to upgrade their monitor now that they have Microsoft Vista installed, Acer America has rolled out five new LCD monitors in its xSeries line, all Vista certified. The company states that any one of its xSeries screens are perfect for the latest multimedia, gaming or video applications and are priced affordably.

The lineup consists of the traditional resolution 1280×1040 17-inch x171s ($179.99) and the 19-inch x191sd ($189.99) models. These two units offer 700:1 contrast ratio and 300 cd/m2 typical brightness. The widescreen Acers include the 19-inch x191Wsd ($279.99), the 22-inch x221Wsd (279.99) and the 24-inch x241Wsd (599.99.) The first two WS models offer 800:1 contrast ratio (bumped up to 100:1 for the x241Wsd), 5 millisecond response times and 300 cd/m2 typical brightness (upped to 400 cd/m2 for the x241.) Last but not least, …